British Second Rate ship of the line 'London' (1656)

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Recent Comments

Britannia (100) 1762-1825
British 100 Gun
1st Rate Ship of the Line
1812 Renamed "Princess Royal"
1812 Renamed "Saint George"
1819 Renamed "Barfleur"
(1762)
Devastation (6) 1841-1866
British 6 Gun
Unrated Steam Sloop
(1841)
Zephyr (8) 1790-1798
British 8 Gun
Merchant East Indiaman
(1790)
Pembroke (60) 1733-1749
British 60 Gun
4th Rate Ship of the Line
(1733)
Mercury (20) 1745-1753
British 20 Gun
6th Rate Ship
(1745)
Seahorse (24) 1748-1784
British 24 Gun
6th Rate Frigate
(1748)
Charles PowlettBritish
Naval Sailor
Service 1728-1749
Namur (74) 1746-1749
British 74 Gun
3rd Rate Ship of the Line
(1746)
Namur (74) 1746-1749
British 74 Gun
3rd Rate Ship of the Line
(1746)
Shark (8) 1732-1755
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Unrated Sloop
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London
Nominal Guns	64	B028
Nationality	Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland
Operator	State Navy
Acquired	7.1656	B028
Shipyard	Chatham Dockyard - Chatham	B028
Designed by	John TaylorBritish Designer Ship Owner Ship Builder Dockyard Staff Service 1627-1660	B065
Constructor	John TaylorBritish Designer Ship Owner Ship Builder Dockyard Staff Service 1627-1660	BWAS-1603
Category	Second Rate	B028
Ship Type	Ship of the Line	B028
Sailing Rig	Ship Rigged	B028
Blown Up	7.3.1664/65	B028

Dimensions

DimensionMeasurementTypeMetric EquivalentB065
Length of Keel123' 4"Imperial Feet37.4948
Breadth41' 0"Imperial Feet12.4968
Depth in Hold16' 6"Imperial Feet4.9022
Burthen1,104Tons BM
DimensionMeasurementTypeMetric EquivalentBWAS-1603
Length of Keel123' 6"Imperial Feet37.497
Breadth40' 0"Imperial Feet12.192
Depth in Hold16' 6"Imperial Feet4.9022
Burthen1,050Tons BM

Armament

1660Broadside Weight = 534 Imperial Pound ( 242.169 kg)BWAS-1603
Lower Gun Deck12 British Demi-Cannon
Lower Gun Deck12 British Culverin
Middle Gun Deck12 British Culverin
Middle Gun Deck12 British Demi-Culverin
Upper Gun Deck16 British Demi-Culverin

Crew Complement

Date# of MenNotesSource
1660360 BWAS-1603
1660450Establishment for war abroadBWAS-1603
1660360Establishment for war at homeBWAS-1603
1660280Establishment for peaceBWAS-1603

6 Ship Commanders

DatesRankNameSource
1657Rear-AdmiralBWAS-16031658CommodoreBWAS-16031659Rear-AdmiralBWAS-16031660CaptainBWAS-160310.6.1664 - 22.2.1664/65CaptainB05123.2.1664/65 - 7.3.1664/65Vice-Admiral of the RedBWAS-1603

1 Flag Officer

DatesRankNameSource
21.6.1664 - 5.2.1664/65AdmiralBWAS-1603

2 Commissioned Officers

DatesRankNameSource
1664LieutenantB0511664 - 1665LieutenantB051

Service History

DateEventSource
19.6.1656Ordered to be launchedBWAS-1603
1658Flagship in the DownsBWAS-1603
7.3.1664/65Blown up by accident at the NoreBWAS-1603

Notes on Ship

Wreck Site informationref:1497

The London Shipwreck Trust

Sources

IDNameAuthorType

B028J. J. Colledge, Book

B051John Charnock, Digital Book

B065Brian Lavery, Book

BWAS-1603Rif Winfield, Book

ref:1497 Web Site

Previous comments on this page

Posted by John Matthews on Tuesday 1st of July 2014 13:50

Southend museums are currently working with English heritage and a team of divers to recover artifacts from the wreck site. Check out Southend museums facebook page. They've got all the links videos and pictures on there.

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Recent comments to other pages

Date posted	By	Page
Monday 8th of June 2026 17:20	F.F.	British First Rate ship of the line 'Britannia' (1762) (100) 1762-1825 British 100 Gun 1st Rate Ship of the Line 1812 Renamed "Princess Royal" 1812 Renamed "Saint George" 1819 Renamed "Barfleur"
Thursday 4th of June 2026 20:01	James Daschuk	British steam sloop 'Devastation' (1841) (6) 1841-1866 British 6 Gun Unrated Steam Sloop
Thursday 4th of June 2026 14:56	AvM	British Merchant east indiaman 'Zephyr' (1790) (8) 1790-1798 British 8 Gun Merchant East Indiaman
Wednesday 3rd of June 2026 19:37	Jon Miller	British Fourth Rate ship of the line 'Pembroke' (1733) (60) 1733-1749 British 60 Gun 4th Rate Ship of the Line
Wednesday 3rd of June 2026 19:33	Jon Miller	British Sixth Rate ship 'Mercury' (1745) (20) 1745-1753 British 20 Gun 6th Rate Ship

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